Thoko Didiza (Photo: GCIS/X)
The speaker of the National Assembly, Thoko Didiza, outlined the process that parliament will now follow after the Constitutional Court found that the previous handling of the Phala Phala report was invalid.
The judgment is related to the independent panel report on pres. Cyril Ramaphosa and the Phala Phala scandal. The court ruled that the National Assembly’s decision not to refer the report to an impeachment committee was invalid.
Moloto Mothapo, spokesperson for the parliament, says Didiza has determined what steps the National Assembly must follow to comply with the court’s ruling.
The Constitutional Court declared rule 129I of the National Assembly’s rules unconstitutional and invalid and set it aside. However, the court also prescribed an interim interpretation and amendment of this rule to improve the handling of art. 89 cases until the rule is formally amended.
Maroela Media reported earlier that the court also found that the special vote which was to determine at the time whether Ramaphosa should be placed in a state of impeachment was unconstitutional and therefore invalid. The parliament must now correct its mistake and the art. 89 panel’s report, which found there was enough evidence that Ramaphosa may have violated the Constitution in relation to the Phala Phala scandal, referred to an impeachment committee.
According to Mothapo, Didiza will formally notify the National Assembly of the independent panel’s report by tabling it through the appropriate parliamentary journals. The president will also be provided without delay with a copy of the report, as ordered by the court.
Didiza will then begin the process of setting up an impeachment committee in terms of the rules of the National Assembly. This committee will review the art. 89 investigative process considered.
The speaker will also formally refer the independent panel report to the impeachment committee, as ordered by the court.
The ruling will further be referred to the National Assembly’s subcommittee on the review of rules. This subcommittee must consider the amendments necessary to bring Parliament’s rules in line with the court’s findings, interpretation and instructions.
The subcommittee will then report to the rules committee. This committee will in turn make recommendations to the National Assembly for consideration.
“The speaker will determine the programme, procedures and time frames for the impeachment committee. She will also ensure that the committee gets the necessary support to complete its work efficiently, fairly and within the framework of the Constitution and the rules of the National Assembly,” says Mothapo.
He says the Constitutional Court has upheld the constitutional obligations of the National Assembly in respect of accountability, oversight and the constitutional mechanisms in terms of art. 89 of the Constitution confirmed.
“Parliament remains committed to fulfilling its constitutional responsibilities seriously and within the rule of law. The processes ordered by the court will now continue according to the Constitution and the rules of the National Assembly.”